Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Third State Legislature

Regular Session of 2005

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 717 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to transfer the Business Action Center from the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism to the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

Your Committee finds that the existence of the Business Action Center fosters the growth of the State's small business community. Your Committee also recognizes the profound impact small businesses have on the State's revenues through their contributions to job creation, attraction of revenues from outside the State, and income and general excise tax revenues. Without a vital and expanding small business community and the revenues they generate, the State's finances would suffer immeasurably.

Your Committee also finds that the employees of the Business Action Center possess a total of over forty years of experience in servicing the needs of Hawaii's small businesses. This combined experience is invaluable in ensuring continuity in the high quality and level of service already provided by the Business Action Center.

Your Committee further finds that existing law requires the Director of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism to fill those positions without regard to the civil service law. Your Committee believes that making these positions subject to the civil service and public employment collective bargaining laws will improve the effectiveness of the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism's Business Action Center.

In light of these findings, your Committee has amended the measure by deleting its contents and inserting provisions that convert the supervisory and personnel positions at the Business Action Center from exempt to civil service status and subjects these positions to public employment collective bargaining laws. Furthermore, the amended measure provides that the present employees in those affected positions will continue to perform their regular duties.

Your Committee believes that granting civil service status to these employees not only ensures that the level and quality of service will continue for Hawaii's small business community and aspiring entrepreneurs, but also demonstrates the State's understanding of the importance of small business to the State's financial well being.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Ways and Means that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 717, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 717, S.D. 1.